“Global investors, who have enjoyed an excellent start to 2019, received some unsettling news from FedEx Corp.” The “weak results from the shipping giant bode poorly for the global economy, and investors don’t seem ready for a slowdown.”

The Economist Intelligence Unit just announced the most expensive cities in the world. Due to inflation, Tokyo doesn’t rank in the top 10. “Singapore marks its sixth straight year at the top of the rankings, and is joined there by Hong Kong and Paris.” Osaka was the only Japanese city to make the top 10 in “the survey, which compares prices across 160 products and services.”

“In the wake of the Christchurch terror attack” we need to ensure “zero tolerance for casual racism.” No longer can you simply ignore or make excuses for these views. You need to “call them out, shut them down, report them, do whatever you need to do to ensure that this level of everyday racism is no longer accepted in New Zealand…. The Christchurch terrorist who livestreamed the massacre spent two years planning it, being fairly open about it all online, in forums and social media. Someone, at some point, could have stopped it. But they didn’t.” Now we know better. “You don’t get to ignore it anymore…. Spreading hate on social media can be criminal. See it? Report it.”

“The United States does not appear at risk of widespread political violence anytime soon. But Trump’s words are still corroding democracy and public safety.” Many people try to make excuses for his abhorrent words, “but they do matter. The president’s continued encouragement of violence—and of white nationalism—is part of the reason that white-nationalist violence is increasing.”

“The challenge of what engineers call the ‘human-machine interface’ has tragically gained attention after the crash of an Ethiopian Airlines Boeing 737 max 8 on March 10th.” But the challenge is not confined to flying. The same issues create perils in semi autonomous cars, trains and ships. “Studies have shown that when people have to wrest control from an automated system, it can take them around five seconds to grasp what is happening.”

“Northern nationalism has shifted its view on the continued viability of the Northern Irish state.” A referendum is imminent and preparation essential for a unified Ireland. “A no-deal Brexit will lead to an instant call for a referendum…. If that happens, we’re into uncharted waters. That scenario is still only a few weeks away.” If there is a Brexit deal, “then the next census, due in 2021, will show a nationalist majority. At that point, it’s hard to see how a British secretary of state could resist calls for a border poll.”

“Boeing’s belatedly grounded jets” serve as “an apt symbol of the erosion of U.S. soft power. After saying there was no problem in the wake of two crashes,” the FAA followed the lead of other governments and banned the 737 MAX.” These days, “even allies are increasingly skeptical of Washington’s leadership.” It is challenging to measure “the influence a country wields though its cultural, technological and economic strength,” but the U.S. fell “to fourth in the Soft Power 30 ranking last summer, from top of the list just two years earlier.”

“Whatever happens on March 29—a no-deal Brexit, a delay to the departure or some kind of agreement—the U.K. faces a slow but steady erosion to its position as the European center of looking after other people’s money….. However Brexit plays out, the U.K. fund management industry will be a long-term loser from the fallout.”

“BBB corporate bonds, the lowest investment grade rating band in which a company’s debt rating can reside, have now grown to make up more than half of the entire global investment grade (IG) market.” When the next downturn strikes,”there could be a cascade of ‘fallen angels’, companies that are downgraded from IG to high yield (HY), swamping the smaller HY market and causing problems for investors as liquidity dries up and imperfect market clearing mechanisms struggle to cope.”